


Under the Pink Willow Tree

by brightlyharry



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: A little angst, Christmas, Christmas Eve, Christmas Fluff, Elf Harry, Elf Liam, Elf Louis, Elf Niall, Enemies to Lovers, Happy Ending, Harry is a Little Shit, Hate to Love, Louis is a Christmas Eve elf, M/M, Mean Harry, No Smut, Short & Sweet, Short Story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2019-12-12
Packaged: 2021-02-26 00:53:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21684808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brightlyharry/pseuds/brightlyharry
Summary: It's Christmas Eve and also Louis' eighteen birthday. It's the biggest day of Louis' life. He's been keeping up with his elfin studies for years all in preparation for this. He finally gets to join Santa on the sleigh.Nothing Harry says can ruin this day for him, no matter how hard he tries.
Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson
Comments: 9
Kudos: 91





	Under the Pink Willow Tree

Many humans tend to mistakenly believe that Christmas is the busiest day of the year for elves. In fact, it is the exact opposite. Christmas is the most relaxed day of the year at the North Pole. All the elves spend time with their friends and family and toast to another successful year of holiday cheer to add to the books. Christmas Eve is the day that is undoubtedly the busiest and most stressful for elves.

Typically, Louis would be anticipating Christmas day. He'd be eager to have an extended break from his elf studies. He'd be thrilled to warm his hands on a cup of hot chocolate and listen to his mother's tales of her days of working in the workshop while his little sisters played with their own set of toys.

Not this year though. This year is a big deal for him. In fact, tomorrow will be the biggest Christmas Eve of his entire life.

You see, Louis turns eighteen tomorrow, which usually is the year most elves are allowed to begin working in Santa's workshop if they choose, or they can further their schooling, entering into Advanced Elfin Education, which allows them to take on more managerial roles in the workshop. They're the brains behind the operation so to speak, but not an iota more important that the elves that spend their days building the toys.

Neither of these options is what Louis will be doing. If he had his choice, he wouldn't have chosen Advanced Elfin Education. He has the attention span of a gum drop. It would have been cool to work in the shop building toys, and he supposes he will still be doing that all the other days of the year. He's not entirely sure. He'll have to speak to Santa about the logistics.

Unlike the other elves, Louis doesn't have a choice in what his future holds.

Louis is special. Christmas Eve is also his birthday. It's a rare occurrence and any elf born on Christmas Eve is considered to be a child of the Winter Solstice. He's always been told he's special and he knew when he turned eighteen, he would be tossed into a position many elves worked their entirelife for.

Any elf born on Christmas Eve automatically earns the official title of Santa's Little Helper, assisting Santa on the sleigh and delivering presents, starting on their eighteenth birthday. It's of course, one of the biggest accomplishments any elf could hope for, and Louis is grateful, but it doesn't stop him from feeling apprehensive about it. He also knows some of his peers are annoyed with him. They don't feel he's truly earned the right to become Santa's right hand elf. They'd never say that to the big man though, as it's been the tradition for hundreds of years. So instead of airing out their annoyance with Santa, a few of the elves air itout with Louis instead.

Louis rolls over on his bed, letting out a sigh as he gazes out the window. Snow is covering everything outside, as it always does. He knows he needs to rest upand get some sleep for his big day, but sleep is evading him like he is Krampus.

A soft knock sounds on his door and his mother peeks through the crack, before entering the room, her hands carrying two mugs. "Louis?"

He turns over again to face his mother, a soft smile on her face. "I figured you might be having trouble sleeping. I brought you some hot chocolate."

He scoots to sit up as his mother sits down on the side of the bed, passing him a steaming mug and bringing her own to her lips. "Do you want to talk, Lou?"

"I'm nervous about tomorrow," Louis admits. He brings his mug up to his lips and takes a sip. "What if I mess up and ruin Christmas? I feel like the weight of every child's happiness is resting on my shoulders."

"Oh no, baby. You are going to be the best little helper Santa has ever had. You'll see, Louis. You're a Christmas Eve baby after all. It will come naturally to you. Santa himself has said before that Eve elves are always the best helpers."

That gets a little grin out of Louis. His mother's kind words paired with the perfect cup of hot chocolate warming his belly are settling him, and also making him a little drowsy. 

She cradles her mug in one hand and reaches out with the other, running her hand through his brown hair. She tucks a wayward piece behind his pointed ear and gives him a smile. "You're going to do great, Louis. And don't let Liam and Harry get in your ear. They're just a little jealous. I know they've been giving you a hard time about tomorrow."

"What if they're right though? What if I freeze up and don't know what to do?" Louissays softly. He sits his half empty mug on the nightstand and nuzzles his headtowards his mother's hand.

"You will know what to do. You've studied for this all year. You're meant to do this, Louis. Now, get into the Christmas spirit and stop doubting your destiny," she says, rising to her feet. She gently pecks his cheek, before moving towards the door."Goodnight, darling. Sweet sugar plum dreams."

"Sweet sugar plum dreams, mom."

*********

Louis had woken up to find homemade cinnamon rolls, warm and ready for him to eat. His mother, father and his four sisters all sang 'Happy Birthday' to him, before joining him for breakfast. He'd been allowed to take a little time off this morning to celebrate his day.

He'd received drawings of sugar plum fairies from Daisy and Phoebe, and sloppy kisses from each of them. Fizzy had given him a beautifully illustrated copy of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas' and Lottie had given him a hand carved plaque with his name engraved on it that she had made in her woodshop class. He was surprisingly impressed and could see her going into woodwork when she turned eighteen.

Lastly, his mother and father had sat on either side of him and handed him a wrapped gift box. Lifting the lid, he had gasped seeing the perfectly polished black shoes, a shiny gold bell attached to the pointed tip.

"For tonight," his mother had said with pride in her voice. "Every elf needs their jingle bell shoes. I'm so proud of you, Louis."

"Don't get ahead of yourself, mom," he had said with a little chuckle, trying to keep the emotions threatening to crawl out of his throat at bay. "I haven't done anything worth being proud of yet."

"But you will," his father praised. "We believe. Don't stop believing, Louis."

"Is that a hint you want the Journey's Greatest Hits album for Christmas, dad? I'll put in a good word." He'd hugged his father and his mother again, thanking them both for the shoes.

He had immediately put them on, too excited to wait for takeoff.

Now, he was sat alone in at one of the bright red tables in the busy dining hall, poking at the ham on his tray. He should have stayed home for lunch. Someone took the seat to his left causing him to look up.

"Happy birthday, Louis!" Niall practically screams, gandering the attention of half of the dining hall. Louis feels his cheeks heat.

"Thanks, Niall," he says to his best friend. They'd met his third year of Elfin primary school and had been best friends ever since. The thing about Niall is he is the nicest, most charming guy you could ever know. He was always laughing and making everyone around him feel good. Louis is sure he has the most spirit out of anyone at the North Pole, making Louis feel lucky to have met him.

"You're not going to eat?" Niall eyes Louis' tray with a rare frown. "You need to eat. You have a busy night ahead of you."

"I know," Louis agrees with a sigh. "Just a nervous stomach."

"Feed that thing and give it some confidence!" Niall says with a pat to his back just as Liam and Harry stop to stand in front of their table.

Louis looks up and feels his stomach roll again. Harry is wearing a smirk on his face. He's decked out in all blue today, from the hat on his curly head to the tights on his legs. Louis swears Harry always seems to give him the most trouble when he's wearing blue.

"Are you ready for tonight, Louis? I heard Santa is bringing Ben with him as backup because he's not sure you're going to know what to do," Harry tsks like he truly feels sorry for Louis and Liam chuckles.

Ben is the current Eve elf. He'd been Santa's little helper for 119 years. He had retired last year, allowing Louis to precede him this year. Louis knows Harry is fibbing, but he doesn't want to give him the time of day honestly.

"Watch out for the dogs," Liam added on. "I heard the dogs can smell elf sweat and will eat you whole if they catch you."

"That's just a myth," Niall chimes out like he's bored.

"You don't have to worry about me," Louis finally says. "I know what I'm doing," he says with more conviction than he feels.

"Sure you do," Harry mocks.

"I do. I've studied for this while you and Liam we're counting candy canes."

Harry's brows draw together in frustration at that and he turns away, heading for his table with Liam following behind him like a lost puppy.

"They don't know anything," Niall assures him. "They're just trying to scare you. You know more about delivering presents and how to make tonight a success more than anyone in the whole North Pole besides Santa." Niall takes a bite of his ham.

"You're a good friend," Louis tells him then checks his watch. "Two hours until I need to check the reindeer. I don't know what to do until then."

"Come with me back to the school house. I can show you a toy design I've been working on. Just a few more months until my birthday and maybe I can build it in the workshop!" Niall proclaims with so much excitement in his voice, it makes it hard for Louis not to feel it too.

*********

"A little to the left please?" Comet asks politely. Louis moves the brush to the left to scratch behind Comet's ear, making the reindeer hum with pleasure. "That's it, Louis. Thank you. You've already got Ben beat as far as I'm concerned. Your brushings are already better than Ben's."

Louis is in the reindeer barn. He's fed them and now, he is brushing each of their coats, making sure each reindeer looks and feels their absolute best for the night ahead. As the new Eve elf, it is now his job to make sure the reindeer as well as the sleigh are ready to ride once the time comes.

"It's true," Dasher agrees with a nod of his large head.

"You sure you all aren't just saying that to cheer me up?" Louis questions them.

He gets various responses all being some version of "No!" and "Course not!"

Rudolph glances over, casting a slightly red glow on Louis' cheek from his nose. "We've got your back, Louis. All of us and Santa. When you've been doing this as long as we have, you learn the true importance of teamwork."

"I wish everyone saw it that way," Louis says with a weight in his voice. "Us elves are all on a team, but there's some that certainly don't treat everyone like they're a valued member."

Dancer stops her hooves against the ground. "I smell drama. Spill the eggnog, Lou. Who is it?"

"That's not drama you smell, D. Cupid farted," Vixen nays out with laughter.

"Sorry! I couldn't help it!" Cupid calls out.

"Guys, back to the point." Dancer tilts an antler towards Louis. "Go on."

"Harry and Liam. They're teasing me about tonight," He gives Comet a pat on the head, then sits the brush on the worktable. He pulls up a chair and takes a seat in it. "I just know they want me to mess up. I think Harry wants my spot. I'm sick of them acting like such... such gooseheaded scalawags!"

There's a collective gasp at Louis' harsh language.

"Do you want me to poop in his shoe? I will," Comet threatens.

The corner of Louis' mouth tilts up in a grin. "I appreciate it, Com. But, I'm choosing to take the high road. I've got to check the sleigh before we hook you guys up." He stands and starts walking towards the exit, sliding the heavy wooden door of the barn open only to see Holly approaching him.

Holly is easily the prettiest elf in the north. Many of the boys Louis' age agree on that. He remembers hearing her name come up in many discussions among the boys in the quiet lulls during class.

Her dark red hair stands out against the soft mint green of her outfit and her eyes are such a crystal blue they look clear. Louis hates to jump on the bandwagon, but he, like many of the others, might have a slight crush on Holly.

"Hi Louis," she says when she reaches him. She offers him a bright smile which has Louis' heart doing things it shouldn't at just a simple greeting. "I wanted to wish you luck tonight. I'm sending you all my Christmas cheer."

"Thanks, Holly," he says earnestly and offers her a smile in return. "I'm going to need some luck."

Holly waves her hand through the air and tells him what his mother told him last night. "You're a Christmas Eve elf. You've got this in the bag."

"We'll see," Louis replies with a shrug. He's trying to play it moderately cool. "Did you have fun at the Annual Solstice Ball last week?" he asks, not quite ready for Holly to run off yet.

The Annual Solstice Ball is like prom for elves. Every year, they have a party the weekend before Christmas to celebrate. There's dancing and games and more food, eggnog and punch than necessary. It's usually a good time. Everyone dresses in their best clothes, the stress and business of Christmas Eve and their studies are forgotten for the night.

"I had a blast," Holly replies happily. "I didn't see you on the dance floor any."

"That's because I don't dance," Louis informs her. It's sort of a lie. Louis loves dancing in his bedroom alone, but he'd never have the courage to dance in front of someone. He doesn't know how to dance with another person either.

He had wanted to ask Holly to the dance.The thought had crossed his mind many times in the days leading up to the ball. Even though he considered it, he knew he wouldn't have had the nerve to go through with it. It's a good thing he didn't ask, because that Wednesday, Louis had been in the dining hall when Harry had asked her to go with him. He'd been seated close enough to overhear the conversation, but Holly's delight at being asked would have informed him of how the conversation had went anyway.

She'd jumped up from her seat and tossed her arms around Harry's neck, her voice laced with excitement when she informed Harry that she'd love to go with him, and her mother was already making her a special dress just for the occasion.

"Everyelf can dance, Lou. If you'd have wore those shoes, the jingle bells would have done most of the work for you." She points to Louis' new shoes with a complimentary tone to her voice.

"Maybe next year," Louis lets the sentence trail off, not sure exactly how he should finish it. 

Maybe next year, he'd ask Holly to go with him. Maybe next year, he'd have a successful sleigh ride under his belt and Harry and Liam wouldn't tease him anymore. Maybe he'd earn a little more respect from his peers.

There are a lot of maybes that could happen next year, but Louis can't sit and think about how much better his life could be next year. He has to focus on this year. There are too many people counting on him. He has to get through this year, before he can think about his dreams for the next one.

*********

Louis has checked everything twice. All eight reindeer's reigns are harnessed on properly. The sleigh is shined to perfection. It's so shiny, Louis can see his face reflecting back at him.

It is finally time. Santa tosses his bag into the backseat of the sleigh, then takes his seat behind the reigns. He pats the spot beside him and Louis climbs in, taking the spot reserved just for him. Louis is smiling now, a lot of the nerves he's possessed all day finally easing up seeing Santa's jolly grin aimed towards him.

"Are you ready Louis?"

"Ready Santa," he confirms and he means it. He's ready for this.

With a gentle flick of the reigns, the reindeer take off in a speedy gallop. Louis, has to grab on to the front of the sled to hold on, and he really clambers for a moment once the reindeer magically lift off the snowy ground, taking the sleigh right along with it.

Nothing has ever felt as magical to Louis as flying, and that's saying a lot considering he lives at the North Pole with Father Christmas and hundreds of other elves.

"Ho, Ho Ho! Merry Christmas!" Santa calls out into the night with a jolly chuckle. 

Louis is certain that his eyes are shining brighter than the Northern Star right now. Everything he'd spent nearly his entire life learning and studying about, it all had led him to this moment. He is on the sleigh with Santa Claus, about to help deliver presents to children around the world. It feels surreal and he halfway feels like he's in a dream. Either that or he still hasn't gotten used to the flying yet.

Lifting his hand up, he adjusts the forest green hat atop his head, and he lets out a cheer of his own. 

"Merry Christmas!" Louis calls out into the dead of the night, before turning to Santa. "We're going to Australia first, right?"

"You've learned the map," Santa states with an approving nod.

"I've had it memorized for two years," Louis tells him, not to brag, but to show just how eager and dedicated he is to doing a good job.

After flying for a little while, houses start appearing underneath them, dotted among the trees. A bundle of nerves hit Louis' belly again. If he can just get through his first house, he thinks he'll be alright. The others can't be too hard. 

Louis is shaken from his thoughts, literally as he's jolted forward, the reindeer leading the sleigh downward towards the black shingled roof of a midsized red brick house. Santa stands grabbing his toy bag. By the time Louis has gotten his smaller bag heaved over his shoulders, Santa is already crawling down the chimney out of sight, leaving Louis scrambling to catch up.

He lands in a heap at the bottom of the chimney. Definitely not his most graceful landing. At least he didn't land on his bag of stocking stuffers. 

Santa is unloading presents under the tree. Louis knows his first task is handling the stockings and keeping an eye out for any curious children who might try to sneak up on them. He sees two stockings hung up on the mantle. He pulls out his pixie pad, clicking the touch screen to pull up the file for the house they're at. 

Within seconds, he knows the house has two children, Abby and Noah, and he knows exactly what to put in each of their stockings. He grabs Abby's starting to fill the young teenaged girl's stocking full of lip balms and bath fizzies. Grabbing Noah's next, he grins to himself as he stuffs the young boy's full of baseball cards and mini action figures. A wave of nostalgia hits him as he remembers getting similar toys himself for Christmas. 

He finishes before Santa, and his curiosity gets the best of him. This is the first time he's ever been inside of a human's home before. He creeps past the coffee table where cookies and milk are waiting. He's almost to the kitchen when he hears a short intake of breath. Turning around, he sees a girl standing on the bottom step of the staircase, staring at him like she's a ghost. 

Or an elf. 

The first thing he can think to do is lift his hands up, trying to show the girl he means no harm, then he lifts a finger to his lips. Santa is going to kill him. His first house and he's already managed to be seen. This must be Abby, who at thirteen, definitely isn't too young to forget this experience by tomorrow like he hopes. 

"Who," Abby stutters out. "Who are you?" 

"I'm Louis. Not so loud," he shushes her, glancing back towards the living room. Santa is still busy putting out presents. There's still hope that Louis can fix this. "You're dreaming. Go back to bed and count to one hundred."

The girl looks at Louis like he's.. well a mythical being.

"You're really an elf? Elves aren't real. Neither is Santa. I'm getting my mom and telling her there's a strange man in the house."

"Wait!" Louis rushes out, jumping closer to the girl. "Look at my ears. I'm real. And so is Santa. Who is going to be highly upset with me if you go wake up your mom. This is my first night on the job. If Santa knows I've been seen by a human, I'm going to be in more trouble than a sugar fairy flying over molasses lake during snow fall." Louis sighs out in distress and sees the girl is still staring at him.

"You talk funny," Abby states. "And you're short. So maybe you are an elf. Or I really am dreaming. I won't tell my mom."

Louis lets out a breath he wasn't aware he was holding. Crisis adverted. Just as he's about to hightail it back to Santa, Abby jumps in again.

"Wait! Did I get an iphone? I don't want to wait until morning. Please elf Louis?"

Raising a brow, Louis eyes her. "Just Louis is fine." He pulls his pixie pad out again while Abby watches his with wide eyes.

"Yes, you got the iphone 11 and the rose gold shimmery case," Louis declares before tucking his pad back into his pocket. 

The smile on Abby's face is too large for her face and it makes Louis feel a little better about spoiling one of the girl's presents.

"Awesome! Now Tyler can stop being mean and picking on me for not having a phone."

"Someone is being mean to you?" Louis asks with a frown. He wonders who this Tyler kid is and hopes he's on the naughty list. He plans to do a check when he's back on the sleigh. "You don't let anything this Tyler lad has to say upset you, alright? I have a elf who picks on me back at the North Pole, too."

"Really?"

"Yes, his name is Harry. He is awful. In fact, he was sure I was going to mess up tonight, but I refuse to let him upset me. I am in charge of my own feelings. So are you." Louis smiles at Abby. Before he knows it, he feels her arms around him, hugging him. He blinks in surprise and then pats her on the back. 

The sound of footsteps remind Louis once again that he has a job to do. 

"I have to get going. Merry Christmas, Abby."

"Merry Christmas, Louis."

When he's gets back to the living room, Santa is lifting his bag, preparing to head back up the chimney. Louis dashes forward, following after him. Lucky for him, he doesn't have to climb up himself, letting Santa's magic hoist him back to the roof. 

They board the sleigh once again and the reindeer take off. Louis feels relieved once they're in the air that Santa doesn't know about his slip up back at Abby's. 

It's when they're landing on the next roof that Santa says, "Sweet girl, isn't she? She's always on the nice list."

"What?" Louis squawks, only making the jolly man chuckle. 

"Really, Louis? Does 'he sees you when you're sleeping. He knows when you're awake' jingle any bells?"

A flush the color of Rudolph's nose creeps on Louis cheeks. Who did Louis think he was trying to pull one over on Santa really?

"She is. I think she's going to like her gifts," Louis says before clearing his throat. "I'm sorry, Santa. I didn't mean to let you down."

"Ho ho, no. You've done no such thing. You'll get it, Louis. That was just the first stop. You've got plenty more houses to perfect the craft of not getting caught. Starting now."

With that, Santa passes Louis his stocking stuffer bag and they get to work.

*********

The rest of the night went off without a hitch. Louis couldn't be more pleased with himself. Santa too praised and thanked him immensely for helping him achieve another successful Christmas across the world. 

Louis is allowed to relax and enjoy his much earned day off. His family has already had their traditional Christmas brunch followed by swapping presents. He's set to meet Niall, now and tell his friend all about his night. 

Shoving his hat on his head, Louis steps outside, stomping through the snow in his new boots. His mother warned him to not get them scuffed, to save them for just Christmas Eve, but he's still on a high from last night and can't part with them just yet. 

Once he gets to the sugarplum forest, he spots Niall stuffing his mother's homemade sugar cookies down his throat. 

Unfortunately for Louis, he spots Harry leaned against one of the trees, talking to a few other elves, Liam being one of them as well as Holly. The sugarplum forest is a popular spot to hang out. Louis should have advised Niall they meet elsewhere.

But since Harry is here already, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world if he heard all about the amazing night Louis had.

"Elfmen and Elfettes, there he is! The elf of the hour! Louis Tomlinson!" Crumbs spew out of Niall's mouth at the introduction and he starts clapping his hands.

Louis feels himself blushing. He waves a hand in the air as he reaches his best friend.

"Oi, cut it out," Louis says humbly, though he secretly loves it, especially since a couple of the elves in Harry's circle let out cheers and call out their congratulations to him.

It gets even better when everyone but Liam ends up leaving Harry too, wondering closer towards them and listening on as Louis starts in telling Niall about his night.

"I saw a human."

"No. Way." Niall shakes his head. "What were they like? Do they smell like beef jerky? I read once they all smell like beef jerky."

Another voice cuts in, "Was it a girl or a boy? Did you have to throw the elf dust in it's eyes to make it forget?"

"He's probably making it up. With Santa there, you really think he'd let Louis mess up and get spotted by a human?"

The last voice has Louis groaning the second he recognizes it. Harry's on the edge of their new circle, his arms crossed over his chest. He's wearing a blue suit once again, only this time an icy blue. Yeah, Louis is in for it.

"I'm telling the truth," Louis refutes. "It was a girl. Her name was Abby. And she didn't smell like beef jerky." He makes a face towards Niall. "She was really nice. Even hugged me after I gave her some advice.

There's a collective gasp among the group, along with one scoff of disbelief.

"Yeah right," Harry goads. "You just want all the attention on you. That's why you're making stuff up cause the real stuff would be boring and no one would care."

Louis has absolutely had it. He marches his way out of the crowd until he's right in front of Harry. "I don't have to make up anything! Being the only elf on Santa's sleigh last night wouldn't be interesting enough on it's own. I didn't ask for any of this attention. I know what happened and you don't!" Louis huffs. "I don't know what you're problem is, Harry. Maybe you're miserable because it's really you who's boring. Is your life that sad and pathetic that you have nothing better to do than obsess over everything I do?"

The group falls silent. Harry narrows his eyes at Louis. His mouth pops open and Louis thinks he's going to give him a verbal lashing right back, but his mouth snaps shut. He finally spins on his feet so abruptly, the bell on the tip of his hat smacks against Louis' cheek. 

"Come on, Liam!" Harry calls out, never once glancing back. Sure enough, Liam runs off after him, kicking up snow as he goes.

"That was amazing!" Niall is the first one to chime in. "I didn't know you had it in you, Louis! About time you told Harry off." 

"Yeah, well. Maybe now he'll leave me alone," Louis huffs out, rubbing at his cheek where he's sure there's a red mark from the jingle bell hitting him.

"What about the rest of your night?" Holly says, smiling brightly at Louis. "Will you tell us?"

"If you guys want to hear it, of course." So Louis starts in telling his peers all about his first successful reign as Santa's little helper.

*********

The sky is getting dark by the time Louis makes it home. He'd enjoyed reliving the night again with the other elves. He especially enjoyed the huge stack of pancakes Niall treated him to for dinner as his Christmas present. He's sure he ate his body weight in maple syrup.

As he walks into his bedroom, he hangs his hat on the top of his coat rack then tosses himself on his bed. All Louis wants to do now is lay back and relax, maybe put on some soft music to soothe his soul. Getting back out of bed, Louis heads to the corner of the room where his mint green record player sits on a small shelf 

A little Elton John sounds nice. He grabs _Madman Across the Water_ from the wooden crate he keeps on the floor and lets out a content sigh when the beginning of Tiny Dancer fill his small room. Closing his eyes, Louis wraps his arms around himself, letting his body sway to the sweet sounds Elton is crooning out. 

"Hold me closer, tiny dancer. Count the headlights on the highway," Louis sings out. He turns, dancing his way back to his bed. A knocking on the window interrupts his chorus. He whips his head around a little startled, hoping whoever it is hasn't been there long enough to see him dancing around his room.

There's no one there, but there's a piece of paper stuck to the glass. The writing on the note is too small to make out from where he's at so he quickly strides across the room. He presses both of his palms against the glass and leans forward to read the neatly written message.

_Meet me under the pink willow tree. -H_

The pointy tips of Louis' ears turn red and he grins. He can't believe Holly wants to meet him and under the pink willow tree nonetheless. The pink willow tree is known for being one of the most romantic spots in the North Pole. Elves are always sneaking off there for their private kissing sessions. Louis is vibrating with anticipation as he runs to grab his hat from the rack and shove it back on his head. He's almost out of his bedroom door, but he backtracks and heads to the small mirror hung up on his wall. There's nothing on his face and his hair is mostly covered by his hat. He does adjust a few pieces of his fringe poking from underneath in the front.

Lastly, he cups his hand over his mouth and exhales, then sniffs to check his breath. All he smells is the sweetness from the maple syrup still lingering. Satisfied, he heads out of his room once again. His parents are still sat on the couch, chatting with each other while some soap opera plays on the TV. He can't stop himself from rolling his eyes as the two elves have a spat because one's boyfriend gave the other a box of gumdrop earrings for Christmas. 

"I'll be back!" he calls out, shutting the door before either of them can question him. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he starts walking. He's still a little beside himself that Holly wants him of all people. There is the slight concern that her interest in him is only coming after hearing him talk about his Christmas Eve night. He shakes the thought from his mind. Holly isn't like that. She's always been a sweet elf. If she likes Louis, it's genuine. He hopes Harry doesn't give him too much grief when he finds out Louis met up with his Winter Solstice date. Who's he kidding? Harry is going to be an absolute menace no matter what, especially if he thinks Louis stole his girl.

The pink willow tree comes into view in all its glory. The long silk looking leaves are so full and plush, they almost touch the snow covered ground, creating the perfect hiding place once you slip past the leaves. They've always reminded Louis of cotton candy. When he gets to the tree, he gently parts two of the branches and slips between them. His mouth drops when he sees Harry of all people leaning against the tree trunk. 

"What are you doing here?" Louis scowls and points a finger at Harry as he stomps closer to him. "You need to leave. I'm meeting someone."

"I'm aware." Harry nods. He licks his lips, almost like he's nervous. "I'm the one who left the note."

"What?" Louis sits his hands on his hips, glaring at Harry. "You left me that note, pretending to be Holly? Why would you do that? Haven't you tortured me enough? I hope you enjoyed your sick joke."

"Holly? I wasn't pretending to be Holly." 

Louis shakes his head in disgust. "Whatever. I'm leaving. You can tell Liam and everyone else how stupid and gullible I am tomorrow." He turns to leave and feels Harry grab his arm.

"I signed it with an H because I knew you wouldn't come if I put my name. I wasn't pretending to be anyone else."

Jerking his arm back from Harry's hold, Louis turns to him. "Why should I believe anything you say?"

"Because I'm sorry?" Harry says and well, that gets Louis listening. He's shocked although still skeptical.

"I needed to talk to you alone," Harry continues. "I can't keep doing this anymore. It's driving me crazy." His hands move to his head like he wants to tug at his hair until he's stopped by his hat. 

"What is driving you crazy?"

"You are!" Harry yells tossing his arms up in the air.

Scoffing, Louis rolls his eyes. "I haven't done anything to you. You always start it."

"Because you won't give me the time of day otherwise." Harry's eyes dart down to his boots and Louis is more confused than ever. 

"You don't like me. Why would you want me to talk to you anyway?"

"That's not true." Harry looks up at Louis, biting his bottom lip. "I've liked you since I was twelve actually."

Louis is frozen. He speak and he knows he must look stunned by the way Harry is looking at him.

"Say something, please," Harry whispers to him.

"I don't know what to say," Louis manages to get out. "You're not messing with me right now?"

Harry slowly shakes his head. "I started having feelings for you when I turned thirteen. I didn't know how to tell you or what to do with my feelings. I was sure you were only into girl elves. I thought trying to be your friend would be sadistic, being that close to you and having to hide my feelings every single day. One day, in school, I was annoyed because you'd been giggling at the back of class with Niall all day. It's stupid but I was jealous so when you asked the teacher about properly making the remote control airplanes, I popped off that you'd know if you were paying attention and how we are doomed if future Christmases rest on your shoulders."

"I remember. That's the first time you'd spoken to me. And I popped off back and told you to mind your business."

"Right," Harry agrees. "And that's what started our rivalry. That's when I learned that I could at least get you talking to me if I said something to make you challenge me. I know it's stupid, but I couldn't be your friend and I couldn't stand not talking to you at all. I'd rather be your enemy than your nothing." 

A blush makes it way to Harry's cheeks and Louis is stunned once again when he sees Harry is smiling at him. He's never seen Harry smile. Two dimples crater his cheeks and Louis didn't know those were there either. They're sort of sweet Louis thinks. He can't believe he's thinking it about Harry of all people. He doesn't realize until then that he's smiling back at Harry. 

"Why did you take Holly to the dance if you didn't like her?"

"Was hoping that would get your attention," Harry admits.

"So where do we go from here?" Louis asks. "Do you want to be friends? Is that why you're telling me now?"

"I just can't be mean to you anymore," Harry replies. "It's eating me up and like you said earlier, my life is getting pretty sad and pathetic obsessing over everything that you do."

"I'm sorry I said that." Louis shakes his head, feeling regretful now.

"Don't be. I deserved it. You really met a human didn't you?" Harry grins at him, once again causing Louis to nod and grin back. 

"I did. Gave her advice on how to handle her tormenter since I had experience with that."

"Maybe he just likes her and he doesn't know how to deal with that so he acts stupid," Harry teases causing Louis to blush. This is still so much for him to process.

"Maybe."

"Truce?" Harry asks, offering his hand out to Louis.

Louis reaches out and grabs it in his own. Once their hands touch, Louis feels his cheeks heating up despite the cold temperature. It shocks him that his stomach flutters at the contact, because he's never been interested in boy elves. He's not against the idea, but it's never crossed his mind. 

Definitely not with Harry.

He doesn't know what to make of it. Maybe it's because it's still Christmas day or because they're in the most romantic place around, but Louis likes the feeling of Harry's large hand engulfing his own. As scary as it is, Louis doesn't want to let go. Neither does Harry is seems because they're still holding hands and staring at each other. 

"Well then," Louis breaks their trance and starts to pull his hand back. Harry grips it tighter. 

"I have one more thing to ask you. Only if it doesn't make you uncomfortable," Harry says, anxiously "I-I want to kiss you. If you don't want to, then we can just act like I never said that. I was serious about our truce and your answer won't change that."

"I don't know," Louis says quietly. Once he sees the disappointed look in Harry's eyes, he quickly adds on. "I'm just..afraid. And not because you're a boy, but because you're, well you're you and I've never kissed anyone before and I didn't realize it until now, but maybe I do sort of want to, kiss you and that's new for me and-"

Harry chuckles.

"Why are you laughing? Stop that! You said you were done being mean!"

"I'm not being mean. You're cute flustered like this."

Louis tugs his hand away and whacks Harry's chest and oh Saint Nick, he's flirting with Harry isn't he?

"You really want to kiss me too?" Harry lifts a brow in wonder, his face serious as he awaits Louis answer like it's going to seal his fate.

"I do. But I'm nervous."

"Don't be. I've never kissed anyone before either. Take a chance on me, Lou. It might turn out to be the best thing you've ever done. Even better than riding on Santa's sleigh."

Louis lets out a small laugh at that. "I don't know. That's a pretty high bar to reach."

"I still want to give it a try," Harry says. "If your nerves are the only thing holding you back, then.."

"Then what?" Louis prods him.

"Louis, I want you to kiss me. It's my Christmas wish."

Louis fingers start tingling with Christmas spirit and he looks down at them and back up at Harry in shock, his eyes wide at the magnitude of what Harry asked him. Elves aren't magical, not really. Unless someone wishes for something on Christmas. Elves must fulfill a wish if asked on Christmas. What makes Harry's request carry such a weight is that everyone only get one Christmas wish ever.

"Harry you're serious?"

Harry nods and Louis clears his throat, stepping closer to Harry. He sits one trembling hand on Harry's cheek and Harry's eyes widen. Louis starts to move his hand, but Harry lifts his own up and lays it on top of Louis'. "I can feel it," Harry says, a lilt to his tone. "I can feel the spirit in your hand." His eyes are almost shining and he swipes his tongue over his lips expectantly.

"I can feel it, too. It's it feels strong. This is my first time granting a wish. You're absolutely sure you want to use your wish on this? On me?" 

"I'm sure. Even if that's all I get is one kiss, I've thought about if for so long, that I've got to have it," Harry assures him. "Probably too late to change my mind now anyway, right? The spirit is already in you. You've got to do it now." 

A smirk appears on Harry's face, along with those darling dimples again. Louis can't help himself. He lets his thumb slip to the indention on Harry's left cheek, stroking the spot. Finally, he leans in slowly and timidly. Harry's eyes flutter closed and then, Louis lips land on his. Louis swears the tingling moves up his fingertips, through his arms until he feels it in his whole body. He moves his lips, actually kissing Harry now and Harry's lips move with his. 

Louis loses himself to soft pink lips under the soft pink tree. 

Harry's mouth part and he lets out a breath that Louis sucks in. He presses his mouth to Harry's once more, feeling more sure of himself this time. Harry even lets Louis deepen the kiss, his thumb still stroking Harry's cheek tenderly. Even though it's the only kiss he's ever had, Louis thinks it's probably the best one he will ever have. 

When the boys finally break apart, they grin at each other. Harry looks radiant, a mystical look sparkling in his green eyes. 

"Did you feel that?" Harry questions.

"Like my entire body was kissing you instead of just my lips? Yeah."

"Who knew Christmas spirit was such a powerful thing?" Harry chuckles and he wraps his arms around Louis' middle. "You liked it then?"

"I did," Louis admits, a grin tugging at his lips. "Enough to do it again."

Harry's smile is brilliant, ethereal even surrounded by the leaves that are creating a pink backdrop. "Good. Then we will definitely be doing that again. Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You're beautiful when you're not yelling at me," Louis responds.

"You're beautiful always." Harry starts swaying them, humming under his breath before he sings, "Lay me down in sheets of linen. You had a busy day today."

Louis stills. "You heard that?"

Nodding, Harry rubs his palm over Louis back as he forces them to start slowly dancing again. "I did. I enjoyed watching you sing and dance. I probably could have fallen in love with you right then if I'd had let myself keep watching you."

Louis snorts, tilting his chin up slightly to grin at Harry. "Who says I want you to fall in love with me?"

"You will," Harry says like it's a fact. "Who knows? Next year, your Christmas wish could be that I fall madly in love with you."

Louis drapes his arms around Harry's neck. "At the rate we're going, I don't think I'll have to wish for it." 

A laugh leaves Harry's mouth and then Harry leans his head down to kiss Louis softly once again. 

"Merry Christmas, Louis."

It is the merriest Christmas Louis has ever had.

**Author's Note:**

> Merry Christmas and happy holidays! 
> 
> Thank you for reading x.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr [here](https://brightlyharry.tumblr.com/)


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